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| Sunday, 13 February 2005 |
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Sports |  |
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Zarook - a fine sportsman and administrator by Upananda Jayasundera, Kandy Sports Special Corr. Central Province has a fine sportsman and sports administrator in Z. M. Zarook who represented Vidyartha College in the fifties in athletics, cricket, football and hockey. It was in cricket that Zarook first showed signs of capability when he made 62 runs in the inaugural 'Big Match' against St. Sylvester's and helped Vidyartha to win that historic game by an innings under the captaincy of T. B. Wijesinghe. However, after leaving school, it was in rugby football that he really came off. He represented Kandy Sports Club between 1965 and 1969 playing under captains Y. C. Chang, Jayantissa Ratwatte and the late Denzil Kobbekaduwa. His coaches were Maurice Perera and Dr. Sangakkara. Having joined the Kandy Municipal Council, he represented them at cricket between 1963 and 1965 and has a score of 192 against the Health Department. It was not only playing rugby football, and cricket, Zarook was keen to give something back to the game and he became a qualified rugby football coach and a cricket coach too. He also qualified as a cricket umpire and is a member of the Central Province Cricket Umpires Association. As a cricket coach, he first started with Gampola Zahira College in the late seventies and switched over as coach of Madeena Central College Madawala juniors from 1984 to 1992 and his coaching was well received and Madeena Centre became under 15 champions in the division three tournament in 1985 and the following year became runners-up in the division two tourney. Right now he is coaching Madawala Sports Club team. Rugby coaching too occupied a special place in Zarook's assignments. He first started with Gampola Zahira College between 1978 and 1980 and then switched over to coaching Kingswood between 1981 to 1989 and his coaching seemed well received as in that first year as well, Kingswood became champions in the Tyrell Muttiah Trophy Tournament in 1981 and later on in 1986 became all island sevens champs. He also coached Dharmaraja College in late eighties and also in 1991. At Kingswood, he got up some fine players like Ibrahim brothers, Ananda Kasturiarachchi and Lalith Wijeratne and from Dharmaraja there was Indrajith Bandaranayake. Right now, Zarook is the cricket co-ordinator Central Province for Sri Lanka Cricket. |
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